Death With a Smile
by Ally Inu
Summary: Naruto and Sasuke knew they would destroy each other. The bond that kept them together would make sure of that. But being apart... was even more painful. Rated M for swearing, implied past relationships and bits of gore.


My first one-shot! Review please.

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Naruto shivered, feeling the cold bite onto his beaten and bloodied body. The snow fell upon his body, the pure whiteness almost blinding. The snow seemed to mock the boy; the purity in the snow was whipped away by the 'demon's' presence. He coughed, leaning his head to the side in. Blood seeped through his rosy lips, bloodied and broken. His body was laying face up, staring into the fluffy white snow clouds above him. He closed his eyes, soaking up the peace that he so rarely found. His blonde hair was matted with blood; his beautiful blue eyes were a duller shade of blue-gray. 

The forest was quiet; the animals still asleep and the world waking up as the sun dawned upon its cold surface once more. The sun dawned upon the towering mountains in the distance; the glorious strands of light illuminating the bloodied scenery. Naruto shivered, his body racking with pain as the Kyuubi desperately fought to save him. The seal stayed in tact; Naruto fighting Kyuubi away, desperately trying to keep him from healing him. The seal glowed, the chakra angrily making its way through his reluctant body. Naruto suppressed it with a groan, feeling the Kyuubi reeling in the back of his head.

Naruto had lost to Sasuke.

As he had did so many times before.

Everyone had like Sasuke better. The village sure as hell liked Sasuke better. His team-

Sasuke had to win at _everything._ Everything Naruto worked so hard for- Sasuke had it in a heartbeat. That frustrated him to no end; seeing everything he had so _desperately_ wanted thrown away by Sasuke!

Naruto was tired of loosing; of being dead last. Everything seemed dead to him as he failed again. Naruto failed. He had failed Sakura. He failed everyone. Most of all; he had failed to save Sasuke. His lungs heaved as more blood escaped his lips. He felt at peace. Naruto had a feeling he was going to die; no matter how hard the Kyuubi could try. So he would go quietly and quickly; the healing would only prolong the pain and exhaustion. Naruto felt hot tears slide down his face as Sasuke stood above him; an unrecognizable face on his face.

How many times had he cried over Sasuke?

Every birthday he would cry.

Every time Itachi came around.

Too many times to have been able to count, not that he counted…

It was this destructive, love-hate relationship that was truly destroying him. Every time he saw Sasuke- every time, it seemed Sasuke changed his mind. Even though, Naruto never cared; as long as Sasuke was there.

Sasuke came to Naruto more often, Orochimaru's merging coming every steadily closer. Their meetings had become more feverish, more needy, more painful than ever before. Their meetings were becoming more and more dangerous, Orochimaru's hold over him slowly strangling him until he was nothing more than a puppet. Sasuke knew, every time he would come around Naruto's arms would be open for a fight and for an embrace. Sasuke also knew, these bonds were destroying them both. But being apart...

It was even _more _painful.

Naruto cried; no longer afraid of who could see. Naruto knew was a dead man. With no one for miles around; being in the middle of the snow country and no one to take him to the hospital; he was as good as dead. Naruto stopped crying, a determined look on his face. Naruto's breathing became a bit quicker and strained as he attempted to prop himself up on his good arm; the one that was not broken. Sasuke made no move to stop him; still standing over Naruto's broken form.

Naruto stared at Sasuke; seeing the frustrated look on his face. He seemed to be making a decision about something. Naruto coughed up blood in a large heave, kneeling down on the ground clutching his chest he heaved, his tears mixing with the blood on the ground. Naruto shakily picked up a kunai from his pouch, facing it into his heart.

"What do you think you're doing?" Sasuke asked, giving him a strange look that Naruto could not decipher.

Naruto made no move to explain, preparing to shove the kunai into his chest in order to stop the suffering. He was dying; there was no reason to deny it. Naruto had denied things for too long; try to save his heart from complete destruction. Sasuke didn't love _him._ Why would he? Even Sakura had moved on.

It was too late. Naruto's love confession would be too late. He tried to tell Sasuke- but not a single word seemed proper to say. 'Sasuke, I love you?' How stupid would that sound, saying that to an enemy of Konoha. Sasuke would never say it back of course; Naruto knew. Naruto felt foolish; this was wrong-

His love was _wrong,_ one sided. Sasuke didn't want anything to do with him. He didn't want anything to do with him at all. Sometimes, Naruto thought he did. But things were always changing with him and Sasuke. But the bonds that held them together- it would never change. Still, even with strange circumstances, Naruto chased the rumors, the glimpses, shadows and people in a wild hope of seeing Sasuke. But the simple notion of seeing Sasuke drove Naruto to chase him to the ends of the world and the limits of his very being.

It was destroying him. But Naruto had a feeling that he was destroying Sasuke as well. Naruto could tell- every time Sasuke had come to him- it was always the same feeling. 'I have to get rid of these bonds once and for all!' But the outcome was basically the same, in both the love and the hate circumstance. The bonds remained. Whether they were proving the need for each other or displaying their independence- they would always end up with the bond intact, mocking, betraying and weakening the couple. Or so Sasuke believed.

Sasuke's feelings for Naruto seemed to go no farther; as Sasuke avoided Naruto as much as possible. Of course, Sasuke knew in a heartbeat- if he returned to the village, there would be open arms waiting for him. But nothing there for Naruto in the village, he was always the nameless boy; the_ demon_.

There would be no grieving if he died; the villagers would have a celebration. But he knew Tsunade- and the rest of his friends would have none of that; in his heart he knew. But Naruto had something Sasuke didn't- loyal friends. Naruto didn't need a village full of people- just them for now. He laughed, dropping the kunai. One day- he really did want the whole village to be his friend- but knew, knew some people simply could not be changed. Time could not heal all wounds; some would just continue to bleed.

"I'm sorry." Naruto whispered his throat raw and cracked.

"What was that?" Sasuke asked, still contemplating something Naruto could not fathom.

"Tell…T-tell Sakura I'm sorry…Tell them all to forgive me…" Naruto whispered, looking up at Sasuke as more serious wounds began to heal over as the blood clotted over them. Naruto laughed. "T-they probably won't forgive me, though…"

He got his kunai off the ground with his good arm and prepared to stab him self in the heart, a quick and easy death as the snow around him seemed completely stained red with his blood. Sasuke frowned. Naruto's last shreds of his shirt slipped off his shoulders as his kunai lunged for his heart.

Sasuke's hand barely reached him in time; he too was heavily injured. Neither Sasuke nor Naruto called upon the seal or Kyuubi; they both fought fairly, at least somewhat. His hand was around Naruto's wrist, his tight grip stopping all movement.

"Moron. When did I say you could _die_?" Sasuke asked, flinging Naruto's arm down into the snow as he retched the kunai out of his hands. Sasuke frowned, remembering the fight. They were equals. Sasuke wanted so bad-

To show innocent, _naïve_ Naruto-

That he was stronger. That, he, Sasuke- was better. But he couldn't. And that fact alone frustrated him to no end. It had angered and insulted him; how he had given almost everything to gain this power- and Naruto didn't! Sasuke was simply furious, with his rival, Orochimaru and mainly himself. Sasuke knew that Naruto had been training- very hard, almost as hard as Sasuke himself- but still, in the end it was the forbidden jutsu that Orochimaru had taught him had won him the fight. But all's fair when _love_ IS **war**; right? Sasuke knew Naruto had done some growing- but no so much. Sasuke saw these changes- nightly, daily, every time they met up again. Whether in battle or in bed, there were always wounds and truths to reveal, bearing their souls to each other once more.

"I don't need YOUR permission, teme. And since when the hell did I belong to you?" Naruto answered, preparing another kunai. Naruto knew his time was limited, so there was no use wasting his last breathes fighting the man he was so addicted to. In the end; Naruto knew it would be the strong and unnatural attachment he had for Sasuke would be what destroyed him.

But Naruto didn't mind anymore. Something was eventually going to kill him;

It might as well have been this. Be born a demon; live a like a man; die like a true comrade. Naruto slipped his hands into his kunai pouch as fast as he could muster; hoping to hide it from Sasuke. Sasuke stopped him again, grabbing both of his wrists and straddling Naruto. Sasuke leaned into his face, a look of resolution in his eyes.

"I said you _couldn't _die." Sasuke repeated, lowering his face till it almost touched Naruto's. "You've always belonged to me." He said to Naruto, a cruel smirk on his face.

"Says you, you stupid fuck face." Naruto sneered loudly, trying to buck Sasuke off. No such luck. Naruto grimaced in pain, feeling his wounds begin to re-open. Sasuke got off of him, the blood creating friction he didn't want to think about. He began watching as Naruto wheezed in pain.

Naruto gasped, finally letting oblivion come over his worn out form, no longer willing to open his eyes, not knowing if this would ever be the last time he opened them. He slipped into the darkness as a pair of arms wrapped around his shivering form, the heat welcomed by his frigid body as he shuddered one last time.

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BEEP. 

BEEP.

BEEP.

Naruto grimaced, hearing the heart monitor on his bedside table. His body hurt in so many ways he didn't even recognize. The bandages seemed to cover every inch of his body, as his mind was sent reeling. His memory slowly seeped back to him. Naruto shot up; feeling dizzy. But-

Who had saved him?

Where was Sasuke?

His world was black for a while as dizziness set in and he felt a pair of arms curl tightly around him.

"Stupid!" He heard. He felt wet tears on his bare shoulder as the slim figure embraced him tighter. "Stupid…Selfish..." The voice whispered. Recognition dawned upon him as he realized who the voice was.

"Sak'ra?" He mumbled, still incoherent.

"You idiot!" She cursed at him, her sea green eyes full of hurt. "Tsunade said- said- said you would never wake up! I was scared, so scared..." She sobbed into her hands. Sakura would not be able to stand it if she lost another team mate. There would be no replacement good enough for him. He heard bustling as his eyes glazed over as well.

"I'm s'rry, Sak'ra." He mumbled, a tear escaping his eye. "Who sav'd me?" He asked aloud, hoping someone around him would know.

"Sasuke brought you in. There was quite a commotion, you know…" Tsunade answered, bustling in. "He was seriously injured, but managed to escape our finest Anbu…He even broke into the Hokage tower. I haven't found out why, though." She answered, looking thoughtful.

She examined the necklaces around his neck. She could recognize the Hokage's necklace, but the other confused her. She fingered the one with a dog tag and rings and became confused. "When did you get married?"

Naruto blinked. "Marr'd?" He repeated the word unsurely. "I nev'r got marr'd!" He exclaimed as loudly as he currently could. 'Baa-chan must be REALLY getting old! She's getting senile!' Naruto thought, looking at her skeptically.

Tsunade fingered the necklace, attempting to remove it only to get a hard shock from it. She propped the Naruto up and carefully examined the necklace, re-reading it over and over to make sure what she was reading was right. "So, there was a reason Sasuke broke into the Hokage tower after all…"

"What are you talk'n about?" Naruto murmured to her, not understanding. He fiddled with the clasp of the necklace, but it was tightly bound. He frowned, fiddling with it for as long as his injured arms would allow him to.

"Naruto, do you remember anything? Do you remember anything at all from last night?" Tsunade asked him, a stern look on her face. She sat down at the base of the bed, contemplating some sort of a reasonable explanation for what had happened.

"A fight…bloody good one and I remembered how…I was dying…I was going to die…" Naruto finished, not understanding what she had implied. He shifted in the hospital bed; the pristine white sheets stained an angry shade of red.

"You did." She replied, understanding the purpose of the sealed necklace. "Well, almost. Sasuke saved you. The necklace was used as a bonding tool, that's what saved you."

"Wh't??" Naruto asked, completely confused. How could a necklace save him?!

"It is sealed to you because he used an old scroll to seal himself to you. In order to save you; he_ basically_ married you. It was outlawed a few years back because when one ninja died, the other did to so many children were orphaned. But; it prolonged the life of the couple and gave them small access to each other's power, which was an advantage. As long as Sasuke was in good enough health, he could take on some of your wounds." She brought the necklace up to eye level, the intricate rings dancing in the light; refracting the light into every angle and almost blinding him. The dog tag had a few things on it:

Naruto Uchiha

D.O.B.: **October 10**

Description:

**Blonde hair, Blue eyes,**

**Roughly 5'9.**

Naruto freaked out, flipping it over. It read:

_**Wait for me**._

**Don't die just yet.**

Underneath these words there was an Uchiha symbol and a swirl the two symbols seemed to have melted together, symbolizing the seal that was placed on the necklace. Sasuke had hid the seal in the dog tags smooth surface. It shone under the harsh hospital lights, the symbol glaring him in the face.

Naruto gasped. That's why Sasuke insisted on him not dying. Because if he did; so would Sasuke. Naruto laughed. He laughed until he cried. His breaths came in short gasps as he finally settled down, the necklace comfortably sitting on his chest.

_Wait for me._

I'll wait, he though with a grin. Sasuke was coming home. Naruto cried, not bothering to see if anyone was watching. Tsunade turned on her heel and left, Sakura shortly following. She looked rather stunned, but Naruto knew she would get over it. She was strong. They all were.

Naruto blinked, seeing something move out of the corner of his eye. He shook his head. It was Sasuke.

"Wait for me, I'll come back. So don't die just yet, dobe." Sasuke said, turning towards the window not looking back. He crouched on the large windowsill, his muscles tensing. His black hair moved in the breeze, his blood dripping soaking his ripped white shirt and dripping onto the floor with a soft 'plip' sound. One of his arms was useless; it dangled at his side. Sasuke leaped out of the window, scarcely looking back.

"I'll wait…" Naruto replied, grinning stupidly. He sighed, looking out the window Sasuke recently left, tears still in the corners of his eyes. Naruto whipped the tears out, grinning.

**I'll wait forever. Our relationship… it's sure as hell not perfect. It might even be the death of me. But I want to die by _his_ hands. Only _he_ can kill me.**

**And I'll die with a _smile.

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Review! PS- D.O.B. means Date of Birth.


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